Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1887-04-28

lhe furniture Is almost exclusively con-
fined to the stock of rocking chairs and
they are of Brentwood manufacture.
There is a lavish display of paintings on
the walls, nine terths of which are on re.
ligious subjects. And there are mirrors
everywhere, for in the social world of
Havana all is vanity, the very vanity of
vanities There is an occasional sofa,
but it is not for the young people of OPP
posite sexes.
In just such house the fair, or rather
brunette, Cuban is born, and goes at
very tender age into the business of "kiss-
ing through the bars" Whether she is
born the heiress of a sugar plantation or
a coffee or tobacco estate, or is the daugh-
ter of tradesmen, she is born the same
way, goes to school about the same length
of time, lives in the same kind of house.
dresses, Except As TO the richness of the
material, i'll the same way, makes love
in the same way and dies and is buried
exactly as these things have been done
for the last three hundred years on the
Island. The normal condition of the
Cuban girl is the state of being tired
1t is hereditary. She is tired of school
at thirteen, at which age she is supposed
TO be woman. During the seven years
in which she went to school she learned
the catechism by heart that Cuba is the
largest island in the whole world and is
entirely surrounded by water :" that the
Spanish girl is an upstart; that it always
Is time to get married that she can out
crochet any of the girls on the block
that higher education is too high that
Havana is the place to live and die; and
that is all. The poor girls life is pass
ed. therefore, in II monotony that APP
proaches the sublime, but the freedom of
the American, English or other barbara
an miss is regarded us shocking to good
morals and manners. She undergoes
system Of surveillance and espionage from
the day that she is born until she is mar
ried, and for a long time after. And all
because she is pretty, as she undoubtedly
is. What is she like? In the first place,
she is invariably dark brunette. Her
hair is black, her eyes are black and her
face is oval-always oval. Her eyes es-
pecially indicate that she was born, lives,
and proposes to die tired. They look the
dolce far aiente in the superlative degree.
They are lustrous as patches of sum
mer night, anguid a. gazelles and brim-
ming over with come-and-take-me ex-
preston that is quite refreshing TO Il man
from the States, who passes the greater
part of his life getting used TO the stony
stare of Clara We're dc We're aud other
types of domestic beauty. Her feet are
marvels of perfection. They are seldom
used and are small in every sense of the
word-in longitude and latitude Her
shoe heels are also marvels, chiefly in al
titue, in which the fashion is extreme.
But her own heel is square dowa on her
shoe heel, and does not rest some three
inches behind the base of locomOtlon, a.
in the fashionable world in the temperate
zones. Ii i almost unnecessary to say
that short skirt is the fashion. As they
say in railroad parlance, the train has not
come in yet. As general rule the dress
is of one material, and for thermometer
cal reasons there are no winter styles.
All is gauzy, summery, shimmery, gossa-
mer, as light as light can be, but in
colors there is every variety under the
sun to be seen in gathering of Cabans.
Should she 20 out to ride or the theatre
she indues herself in a lace mantilla,
black, blue, brown, pink or green, ac-
c)rding to taste, which she drapes about
her shoulder. in a maryelously cute fash.
ion, and with a special attachment Of the
cloak covers her head and nine-tenths Of
her face. Abroad she Is practically in
domino and abraad she never goes
alone, whether it be to school, TO church,
to ride to walk, or to the theatre, which
last is her vaulting ambition. Looking
at her on the street, accompanied by her
nurse" governess or mamma, she APP
pears to be the most uDapproachable Of
sublunaries. So she i.
The young man, who 'has intentions"
calls" for instance. When he does, he
calls upon the whole family. They will all
be found sitting opposite to each other, in
the rocking chairs facing each other. He
gets rocking-chair and joins the party.
She. for prudential and traditional reasons,
is always on the other side. What be has
to say must, therefore, be said aloud, and
for the benefit Of the mass meeting, presi-
ded over by his future mO;her-in-law. Ey-
erything is stiff, formal but customary, and
If she saws ANYTHING at all during the Gin